The Apocalypse

ZOMBIES!? For whatever reason there is a huge obsession with today’s youth (and beyond) with some sort of ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE. If it doesn’t have to do with zombies then others might correlate the word to some cataclysmic disaster that destroys all of planet earth. Hollywood movies have fueled this type of destruction for years and this “end time” belief seems to have crept into Church.

Let’s take a simple approach to this and break it down. Apo- means, “away from” and Kalupto means, “to cover or veiled.” Doing this takes away some of the “negative” beliefs that come with the word. Apocalypse simply means unveiling or revelation. What could be better than the unveiling of Jesus? Yes, there are some negative strokes unleashed during this unveiling but the end result brings the greatest result imaginable. The apocalyptic writings were most commonly found between the Old and New Testaments but we see similar apocalyptic language in the books of Daniel, Ezekiel and others. The point of these style of writings were mainly given to remind the chosen people of their coming Hope.

If you think this book is mainly negative events relating to the destruction of the planet earth then I strongly urge you to repent or simply change how you think (I realize the word repent has some funny annotations as well). If you think that the book is mainly about doom and gloom and an angry god, then throw that out too! If you think that the events and descriptions found in the book are too far-fetched and only filled with religious jargon for the spiritual elite, then…. read it again and again and again and ask the Holy Spirit for understanding!

The book of Revelation’s most significant theme is the greater unveiling or revealing of the God Man, Jesus Christ. This book unlocks an even deeper depth of His Beauty, Love, Power, Heart, Leadership, Wisdom, Passion, History, Majesty, Kingship, Righteousness, Judgment, and Splendor (and on and on). All of these glorious descriptions of Jesus found in Revelation take what the rest of Scripture gives us and multiplies it!

“Who do you say that I am?”Matthew 16:13-27

This is THE greatest question that one will ever have to answer in their lifetime! The CORRECT answer to this question is what Jesus is building His beloved Bride on! It is my belief that Jesus was not talking about building His Church on Peter “the rock” but on Peter’s heavenly download from the Father.

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

WOAH! Happy are you, says Jesus. It’s almost like this response from Peter shocked Jesus a little bit. Peter is known for sticking his foot in his mouth, but out comes this holy declaration! This is a revelation straight from Heaven; Holy Spirit breathed.

We see Peter later on in his life telling the saints to fix their hope in this very same revelation,

“Therefore, gird your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”1 Peter 1:13

The Apostle Paul prays that the saints would grow in this revelation,

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.” Eph. 1:17

The Apocalypse of Jesus is not a bad thing, but it will destroy you! It will annihilate your pride, greed, lust, and hardness of heart. Look through the lens of seeing Jesus as the great Shepard leading His people into eternity. There will be trials and tribulations, suffering and martyrdom, but He tells us the end result. His heavenly home descending down to earth so that He may dwell among men and that we may dwell in the light of His face forever.

Remember that God started with a blank canvas and painted the picture exactly the way He wanted it to look. Let’s ask for His perspective on things and if it seems hard to grasp then wrestle with it; don’t walk away from it!